Dakar 2018: Barreda is back in business

13 January 2018, 10:34 | Sandy Nunez

Sainz trims Peterhansel's lead with first Dakar stage win

Spaniard Mena continued his solid run to finish the sixth stage at 23rd position and an overall 21st place. We wish the Indian rider a speedy recovery and we are sure he will be back stronger for next year's race. His expertise not only helped him, but competitors too, who followed him on the hard trail to ensure they don't make any mistakes.

Indian driver C S Santosh, of Hero MotoSports, gained five positions to be 51st overall after the fifth stage of the Dakar Rally, which will now move into Bolivia. Hero MotoSports rider CS Santosh was back in action mode traversing through the high altitude region as he completed the stage in 38th position and 56th overall. Barreda is now 12th overall, one position behind American teammate Ricky Brabec, who finished a disappointing 24th in Stage 4 and dropped from fourth overall to 12th overall, 21 minutes and 7 seconds out of the lead. After some kilometers, we realized that navigation was tough for everybody, and the soft sandy dunes were not making it easier for us. I was feeling a bit exhausted in the morning as I didn't have a good sleep, so it took me a little time to get going in the stage. Competitors were challenged by the tricky canyons in the first 40 km of the stage made only tougher by the dunes that followed.

The organisers also separated the route for the quads and bikes in the 5th stage.

As for the auto classification, French rally driver from Peugeot Cyril Despres finished first, taking the top three positions of the day, followed by Stephane Peterhansel in second place and Sebastien Loeb in third. Aravind's dream of becoming the only second Indian to finish the Dakar Rally has shattered again due to this unfortunate incident.

It was Stage 5 victor Joan Barreda who led the bikes off the start alongside the banks of the Titicaca Lake.

The retirement of Aravind has left Sherco TVS with only a single rider, Joan Pedrero. Aravind KP put in another good performance and improved his position by 10, ending the stage in 30th place, impressing everyone with his handling of the bike. "We did stay in the top 20 but fell back a little in general".

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